G.R. No. L-6231, March 18, 1911
CELESTINO SYTIAR CLEMENTE, plaintiff-appellant, vs. AMBROSIO MARASIGAN, defendant-appellee.

FACTS

Plaintiff Celestino Sytiar Clemente filed an action to recover possession of a parcel of land from defendant Ambrosio Marasigan. The trial court ruled in favor of Marasigan. Evidence showed that Marasigan and his predecessors-in-interest had been in quiet, peaceable, and uninterrupted possession of the land under a claim of ownership for many years. Marasigan purchased the land in 1894 from one Icaza, who was then in possession, through a private deed of sale. This sale was later ratified in a public document by Icaza’s heirs on July 19, 1902. The action for recovery was filed on October 29, 1906.

ISSUE

Whether the defendant has acquired ownership of the land through acquisitive prescription.

RULING

Yes. The Supreme Court affirmed the trial court’s judgment. The Court held that Marasigan had acquired prescriptive title to the land. His possessiondating from 1894, under a claim of ownership, in good faith, and through a valid purchase from a previous possessorwas quiet, peaceable, and uninterrupted for over ten years. This satisfied the requirements for ordinary acquisitive prescription under the law then in force. The action for recovery, filed in 1906, was therefore barred by prescription. Costs were imposed on the appellant.